I'd totally watch Riva Ridge: The Movie. How about we get one on Canonero II? Disney couldn't make it cuz they'd have to admit Riva existed when he gets beaten by Canonero II, but I think it could be done. Apparently he was born at Claiborne, which I'd forgotten, yet the underdog story begins immediately with his crooked leg. What's the connection to Greensboro, NC? Wikipedia had a screwy entry saying he was bred there, but technically he's KY bred. The plane ride drama of getting to the US alone was pretty crazy with his sharing a ride with chickens and ducks, the plane catching fire, not having proper papers, ending up in Panama, then Miami again, losing a lot of weight, getting dehydrated, and having to travel 1100 miles by van because they were running out of money. Then a language barrier keeps Churchill Downs from letting them in.
http://community.seattletimes.nwsour...6&slug=1285530
What it took to get that horse to the race is exciting, nevermind his winning the Derby and Preakness. There's Nixon, Vietnam, and the racing establishment apparently not too thrilled with this crooked legged Venezuelan colt. I'm not sure how you'd end it since he lost the Belmont, but there's gotta be a way for it not to be a downer. Maybe have it be about how he gets the Eclipse for Champion 3yo Colt.
I still think with Secretariat, the American public is the underdog in a way. Seabiscuit made folks happy during the Great Depression. Secretariat did it following the trauma of Vietnam and the radical changes the country'd just gone through. I like the Winston Churchill quote that sometimes the outside of a horse is good for the inside of a man.